Inverted Values

Flipping channels tonight, I ran across PBS and a local interview show with a doctor from the Children's Hospital.  The topic of the show is pretty simply and direct: In America today, we are facing the first generation of children who's life expectancy will be shorter than their parents.

That's pretty easy to grasp.  Difficult to believe, but easy to grasp.

It's true.  But most people are watching America's Funniest Home Videos.  Because they just don't care.

Obesity is increasing due to fucked up diets. Obesity overwhelmingly leads to Diabetes.  The rates of Diabetes are increasing at an increasing rate. That's bad.  Anytime something "bad" is increasing at an increasing rate, that's worse than bad.  That's criminal.  Parents that shove fried shit in their kids' mouths should be fined.  Parents that stuff the cabinets with Twinkees, Pop Tarts, and sugar-bloated colored water drinks, should be chained to a wheel that powers a generator.  Parents that fill the refrigerator with Hot Pockets and Marie Calendar's fat-filled meals should be beaten in public.

Was I a bit over the top?  Sorry.  No, actually I'm not sorry.  It's time for parents to do their job and stop blaming everyone else.  If you're fat, that's one thing.  But don't pass your failed self-control disaster onto your poor kids.  That's no different than holding them down and blowing cigarette smoke in their face.  It's a slow death sentence.  But it doesn't just impact them, or their families, it impacts society.  The more people who require medical help for issues that are caused by obesity drive up health care costs and that drives up insurance rates for all of the rest of us who eat right, get out and walk and at least TRY to keep our bodies healthy.

Shoving crap into their mouths is killing them.  It's breaking our society.  It's putting us behind other countries.  It's wasting all of the hard work our great grandparents suffered through to make this a better place for their grandchildren's grandchildren.  Shoving six hot pockets in your mouth isn't cute and it isn't macho.  It's stupid as shit.

Nobody is asking you or anyone to live in a monestary or become a Vegan.  Just use some common sense.  Cut down the fat calories.  Increase the better foods and drink better liquids.  Red Bull, Mountain Dew, Monster, and Four Loco aren't worth a shit.  If you need that you have more serious problems to look into.  Same with 5 hour energy bullshit.  If you need that you have an addiction and you need help.  Eat right.  Drink right.  Exercise.  And get more sleep.  It's not rocket science.  It's dirt simple.  If you can't do that you're a fucking idiot.  Maybe that's the real problem: too many fucking idiots.

Wake up. Look around.  Look at what your kids are eating.  Look at what they're surrounded by at school, at shopping centers, at parks, at friends houses, at the Laser tag place, and in your own home.  It's as simple as this: If you really love your children, you'll do this.  If you don't bother, you don't love your children.  Period.  End of story.